For our first home game of the season we spoke with the lads at The Wednesday Week so it was only right we caught back up to preview tonight’s game at Hillsborough as both sides look to end their losing streaks…
Sheff Wed are sitting in the middle of the table, only 6 points away from 6th place. Last time we spoke early on in the season and you had predicted a top 7 finish, are you confident of achieving that as we approach the business end of the campaign?
It’s been a season of ups and downs - not just with league positions but also with performances on the pitch. At times we have shown we can mix it with the best in the league. For example, you look at last Friday we matched Burnley for large portions of the game, only to concede four goals and look like we took a bit of a hiding! This has happened too many times this season. Concession of late goals has cost us at least 10-12 points this season. If you consider that we could be further up the league than we are. However, points are more important than performances and we are where we are on merit. We are absolutely still in the conversation for a top seven finish, but so are 6-7 other teams. Ultimately, my heart says top 7 but my head is a little more pragmatic - top 10 would be a very good season given the turbulence we continue to endure.
Looking at your last five games, it’s one win in the last five. Is it simply a bad run of form or is it to do with the opposition?
I don’t think we’ve been outplayed in many periods of games. We haven’t been hanging on against teams. We were much better than Coventry and lost to a goalkeeping error. The difference in attacking quality against Burnley cost us heavily. We equalised in injury time against West Brom, only to lose in the 96th minute. We were also the better side against Luton but couldn’t put them to the sword. It’s a bad run of form that has been of our own making rather than the opposition and a lot of that can be attributed to a lack of squad strengthening and subsequent injuries since January.
Ike Ugbo was signed in the summer, as of yet he hasn't scored in the league. Has he been a failed signing or is there still hope that he can come good with more time?
It’s becoming a real bone of contention. Ugbo was the marquee summer signing but has flattered to deceive this term. He wasn’t necessarily prolific last year, but chipped in with some essential goals. This season he looks a shadow of the player we thought we’d signed. It’s a shame, because we want him to do well, but it’s not happening. I wouldn’t be worried as a Sunderland fan if I saw his name in the starting line up.
On the other hand, Josh Windass leads the pack with 10 goals. Has he been your standout player this season?
Windass has grabbed attention because of his goal scoring streak and the wonder strike against Derby. Whilst he remains one of our most important and influential players, I don’t think many Sheffield Wednesday fans would argue that our standout player this season has been Shea Charles, with Djeidi Gassama in second place.
Did you have any big incomings or outgoings in the Winter transfer window? If so has it impacted the season much?
We can’t get rid of players! The chairman won’t allow it! There were some internal issues resulting in something of a stalemate between chairman and manager. There were rumours of the two not speaking, which effectively meant we lost at least three weeks of activity. We did manage to bring in Stuart Armstrong, who was effective at this level last season for Southampton. He’s been our best addition, but wasn’t what the majority of fans thought we needed. We’re painfully light at the back, and with Ugbo not firing, we’d hoped we might see some goalscoring prowess coming in too. However, the only other additions were Ibrahim Cissoko, who has made very sparse appearances from the bench and has been underwhelming at best if I’m honest. The other player we got in was Ryo Hatsuse - a Japanese left back who came in on a free. He seems a more exciting prospect, but again he’s only played 15 minutes of first team football.
Which Wednesday players should we keep an eye out for as a danger?
If Shea Charles is on it, everything will go through him and he will influence the way we play. I genuinely believe he’s the best player I’ve seen in a Wednesday shirt since the Premiership era. He’s that good. The other player who we’ve really taken to this season is Gassama. He’s added strength and end product to his game and will be the main attacking threat if he’s playing. He’s the sort of player who is getting fans out of their seats at the moment. Remember the name!
When we last played at the start of the season, we asked you who you thought was our most worrying player for Sheff Wed, and we said you couldn't choose Jack Clarke. Now he's not here it might make your decision a bit tricky, so who are you hoping has a quiet night on Friday?
I wouldn’t want to lie and say that I was an expert in all things Sunderland, but the player I see that constantly seems to turn heads is Chris Rigg. I don’t understand how does what he does at that age! I hope he’s either not playing or very quiet at Hillsborough. I’ve also been impressed with the bits I’ve seen of your goalkeeper Patterson and it would be remiss of me not to mention Bellingham. He’s destined to have a great career at the highest level.
If you don't manage to grab a tightly contested play off spot this season, is anyone worried that the previous summer interest in Danny Rohl could come back and tempt him to depart or are you confident he's in it for the long term?
Losing Röhl is my biggest fear if I’m honest. He’s destined for bigger and better, but I hope he continues to want to cut his managerial teeth with us for another year or two yet. The resurgence he’s overseen on our budget with the players he has at his disposal is remarkable. Unfortunately, if I were a betting man I’d put my money on him being elsewhere come the start of next season.
Where is the best place for a travelling away fan to grab a pre-match pint?
Unfortunately there are not any away allocated pubs near Hillsborough so your better off having a drink in the city centre and making your way to the ground just before kick off.
Finally, what's your score prediction and who will get the goals?
It’s another head v heart situation. Logic states that given the players we have out and the quality you have, we shouldn’t lay a glove on you. However we are playing better than the results suggest, so I’m going to go for an optimistic 2-1 - Wednesday goals from Gassama and Windass.
